TOKYO: Japan’s Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso said yesterday he had no intention of resigning over comments he made and later retracted, that were interpreted as praise for Germany’s Nazi regime and Adolf Hitler’s rise to power. The comments by Aso, also Finance Minister and a former premier, drew criticism from a US-based Jewish rights group and the media in South Korea, where bitter memories of Japan’s Second World War militarism run deep. The gaffe could complicate foreign policy for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe because there are worries that Abe is shifting Japan to the right by pushing for a bigger role for the army and a less apologetic view of Japan’s wartime history.
Thailand, China to discuss code
BANGKOK: Thailand yesterday welcomed China’s readiness to discuss a contentious Code of Conduct in the South China Sea but cautioned that talks will take time. China will host a ministerial meeting with the Association of South-East Asian Nations on August 28-29 on establishing the code.
Three scribes gunned down
GENERAL SANTOS: Three journalists have been gunned down in the Philippines, police and rights watchdogs said yesterday. Freelance photographer Mario Sy was killed in front of his wife and child by two suspects who broke into his home in the southern city of General Santos, police said. The attack followed the shooting deaths in Manila on Tuesday of two columnists of a tabloid that had ceased publication, said Rupert Mangilit, Secretary-General of National Union of Journalists of the Philippines. The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists says at least 73 Philippine journalists have been killed since 1992.
Rebels slam Forbes list
MANILA: The Forbes list of 50 wealthiest Filipinos highlights the widening gap between the rich and the poor in the country, a militant group claimed yesterday. Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) said the list “belies any claim of inclusive growth” amid the recent economic gains being trumpeted by the government. “The people on the list own companies that control every aspect of the Filipino’s life... Their wealth is in stark contrast with the worsening poverty and unemployment of many Filipinos,” Bayan said.
AGENCIES
